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I don’t want to jinx it, but the shoulder thing seems to be 99.9% resolved. At least for now. Lots of trigger point digging, moist heat and a little tweak to the alignment of down dog seem to have done the trick. Whatever the trick is.

I was resigned to bringing the shoulder pain to Mysore. After all, going there to practice is about bringing all the crap that’s currently part of your practice, right? Still, I’m happy for the reprieve.

The shoulder pain has had many incarnations over the past 7 years. But it seems to be fading, dispersing. Every recurrence is milder in character. It takes a long while and many iterations for deep pains to cycle out completely. This is a concept that doesn’t seem to resonate with those who don’t practice — civilians think every pain is a new pain, that it’s ridiculous to trace the patterns over time and see systemic evocations that are moving toward resolution. Western medicine is on their side. I don’t mind, though, because my experience is one of less and less pain.

Much like the lower back pain that hung around for 3 years. When it finally went away, it’s like it took a huge hunk of anxiety and stored memories away with it.

In the end, then, we end up empty?

Killing a little time this morning, before practice. Sunday pre-practice time is nice, but also requires a little attention: I can drink coffee and read longer than I can on a work day, but if I lounge for too long, I can get a little stuck, a little tamasic. Daisy and Waylon are snoozing on the couch beside me, and they are MODELS of tamas. Deep, dreamless sleep. With snores and occasional stretching.

I’m shifting into Mysore mode. D and I had dinner with friends last night. Alicia gave me a lovely going away gift: Shea butter in a nice tin, and a notebook for my musings. They’re already packed. I’m about 75% packed. Anna brought over some of her India clothes for me — a wrap skirt and a pair of baggy pants made the cut. I brought 5 days worth of yoga clothes last time, but really only needed three. This is the sort of stuff I’m thinking about these days, as I put things in the suitcase, then sub something out when I put something else in. I like having the finite amount of space — it helps me think. I guess I’m a designer through and through — I love having parameters, even when they’re arbitrary.

I’ll be blogging about the trip here.

What hurts is my left shoulder. Infraspinatus? Rhomboid? Posterior deltoid? Ugh, referred pain in this area is complicated. I did all of my Google research and then just pulled out the theracane and the Kwon Loong oil and tried to settle it that way.

I noticed it Monday after I cooled down from practice. Then yesterday was a Moon Day, so all I could do was continually move my shoulder around until I felt it — kind of like worrying a sore tooth.

This morning: a chance to figure out what’s going on. A nice slow practice to feel it out. Pasasana — yup. Felt it. But not like pasasana was the root of the problem. Carried on, sleuthing and breathing and healing.

Thought the LBHs would be problematic, but not at all. Daisy came over and nudged me in ekapada sirsasana, but there was no shoulder pain. So more breathing and healing… until headstands. The first timber gave me my answer: yup, that’s what cranking the shoulder. Not surprising, really — once I figure out a controlled way to play with gravity, I tend to go for it. *Without mindfulness* [I say kind of guiltily, but also kind of with my eyes rolling. Must the need for mindfulness ruin ALL my fun??]

So, how to heal: practice and pay attention. Okay. I’m down with that. Theracane, heat, a little extra sleep, salt baths. What’s not to like?

And a quick word on David Robson’s MP3 of a 4 second drumbeat. 80 minutes of 4 second intervals. Good for getting a nice even inhale and exhale. And the drumming is awesome.